PARLIAMENTARY WRITTEN QUESTION
(28 August 2026)

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the Nursing and Midwifery Council’s (a) performance against regulatory standards and (b) financial transparency and Fitness to Practise administrative processes for registrants.

Asked by:
Bradley Thomas (Conservative)

The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) is the independent regulator of nurses and midwives in the United Kingdom, and nursing associates in England. The United Kingdom’s model of healthcare professional regulation is founded on the principle of regulators operating independently from the Government.

The Professional Standards Authority for Health and Social Care (PSA) oversees the bodies that regulate health and care professionals in the UK, which includes the NMC. In the PSA’s most recent reporting period, from January to December 2025, the NMC met nine of the PSA’s 18 Standards of Good Regulation. The NMC has publicly committed to implementing the report’s recommendations, as part of a three-year transformation plan designed to strengthen its culture and improve operational performance.

The NMC submits an annual report and accounts to Parliament, through the Privy Council, setting out the regulator’s income and spending in line with requirements laid down by the Privy Council. The accounts are subject to external audit, are certified by the Comptroller and Auditor General, and submitted to the Charity Commission in England and Wales and to the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator.

The Department discusses matters relating to the NMC's performance in meetings with the NMC and with the PSA.

Answered by:
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